CLEARWATER, Fla. – The easy and perhaps safe choice would have been to send Scott Kingery to Triple-A Lehigh Valley.

No one would have batted an eye. After all, Kingery played just 63 games at Triple-A last season, so another month with the IronPigs wouldn't have hurt him. Besides, by keeping Kingery in the minors for another few weeks, at least, the Phillies would have been able to delay his arbitration-eligible years – when Kingery can start making big money – for another full season.

That happens often in baseball with top prospects. No one would have batted an eye at this either.

But in case you haven't noticed, the Phillies' motto during spring training has been #BeBold. And that has everything to do with this 2018 season, which the Phillies will begin Thursday in Atlanta against the Braves.

The latest move came Sunday when the Phillies signed Kingery to a record-breaking and unprecedented contract for a drafted player yet to play a major-league game. Kingery's contract could last nine years and be worth as much as $65 million.

The Phillies also signed first baseman Carlos Santana as a free agent back in December, long before many free agents ended up in a sort of purgatory until March. The Phillies then signed one of those purgatory players in starting pitcher Jake Arrieta, who had been the ace of the Chicago Cubs' staff the past three seasons.

Phillies manager Gabe Kapler begins his first season as a major-league manager on a team hoping to make the playoffs after five straight losing seasons.(Photo: Lynne Sladky, AP)

"I think the message is, ‘We’re ready. We’re ready to take a major step forward,’" said Phillies manager Gabe Kapler, who has never managed a game in the major leagues. That was another bold moving considering Kapler's emphasis on analytics, something the Phillies have been reluctant to use in the past.

All of this leaves the Phillies, who haven't had a winning season since they won a team-record 102 games in 2011, talking about making the playoffs this season, whether it's winning the NL East where only the Washington Nationals finished above .500 last season or getting in as one of the two wild cards.

It's quite a change from spring training last season when former manager Pete Mackanin was saying that the goal was a .500 season, or mediocrity. The Phillies were well short, going 66-96.

Santana cited similarities with his former team, the Cleveland Indians. In 2012, the Indians lost 94 games, behind a mostly young team that came up together through the minor leagues. After that season, they hired a new manager in Terry Francona, signed a few veteran free agents and made the playoffs as a wild card.

"In 2013, nobody was worried about Cleveland," Santana said. "There was no pressure. We could just go out there and have fun. This is like the same. Nobody is worried about Philadelphia. So everybody is going to be surprised.

"Everybody is like, ‘Ah, Philly, young talent, that’s nice.’ But we believe it. We play hard. We only worry about winning, whatever it takes."

Slowly, perhaps painfully so, the Phillies transitioned from a team built off the 2008 World Series champions with Chase Utley, Jimmy Rollins, Ryan Howard and Cole Hamels to one built around young players in Rhys Hoskins, Maikel Franco, Odubel Herrera, J.P. Crawford and now, Kingery.

The Phillies supplemented this group with established veterans like Santana, who has averaged 25 home runs and 85 RBIs per 162 games in his career, and Arrieta, who has gone 54-24 with a 3.12 ERA over his last three seasons.

"We all see what management did," said Franco, who led the Phillies with 24 home runs last season. "You sign important players because you want to win. They know we are there already. The only thing left to do is to go out there and play the game the right way and try to win the ballgame.

"We have it all right now. We’re not rebuilding anymore."

Added Hoskins: "I think it confirms what the thought is in the clubhouse – that we’re ready to compete. I think we’re trying to send that message around the league. We know that we’re talented. We’ve always known that. I think it was just a matter of time."

It was the same way with promoting Kingery and finding ways for him to play every day on a team where he doesn't have an established position. His best position is supposed to be second base, but Cesar Hernandez plays there. He has also played third base, but Franco plays there.

Then in the outfield, there's Hoskins, Herrera, Aaron Altherr and Nick Williams.

"The idea of being bold, and that's been a theme throughout camp," Phillies general manager Matt Klentak said upon signing Kingery. "I’ve never signed a player to a contract like this before. The Phillies have never done this. In that sense, it’s unprecedented and record-setting. We always try to keep an open mind for opportunities, and really this is a win-win as far as I’m concerned."

Back in 2003, when another young phenom was tearing up the minor leagues, the Phillies kept Utley there until August because veterans Placido Polanco was the second baseman and David Bell was the third baseman. Utley started the next season in the minors, too.

It wasn't until 2005 before Utley was the everyday second baseman. The Phillies also waited to make room for first baseman Ryan Howard because Jim Thome was already there.

The Phillies weren't going to wait any longer for Kingery. If a position was blocked, they'd find a way for him to play.

"He’s not going to sit," Klentak said. "All of our players are going to get a lot of reps. It is unlikely any one player that is going to play 162 games. It’s even less likely that a player is going to play 162 games at the same position. That’s not the type of roster that we’re building."

Klentak then said that Kingery isn't the only one moving around the diamond. Hoskins, who came up last August and hit 18 home runs in his first 34 games, is making the switch from first base to left field. That move enabled the Phillies to sign Santana.

In addition, Crawford, a natural shortstop, was called up last season and played second, third and short. The Phillies traded Freddy Galvis during the offseason to open up shortstop for Crawford. But Kingery can play there, too, if Crawford needs a break.

"There’s no question about it that there’s a ripple effect to whatever decisions we make," Kapler said. "We’re well aware of it. One of the things that we pride ourselves on is communicating effectively, communicating preemptively, so nothing comes as a surprise.

"If somebody is not in the opening day lineup, whether it would be Scott or somebody else, the message is, ‘You’re probably in the lineup the next 2, 3, 4, 5 days.’ And then getting to the next man in line, and the next man in line."

Still, it's a juggling act. And the pitching rotation could be the same way, after the top two starters in Arrieta, who's scheduled to make his Phillies debut April 8, and Aaron Nola, the opening day starter.

But the Phillies added depth to the bullpen to supplement starters who might not last more than four or five innings. That, too, is a new trend in baseball as starters are rarely asked to pitch 200 innings or more anymore.

There will be other "bold" moves based on analytics. This is why the Phillies hired Kapler, after all.

It goes beyond the infield shifts that practically every team uses. The Phillies will likely do it more often. But you could also see Hoskins in left field and Altherr in right field switching positions for a particular batter in the middle of an inning in an effort to have the ball hit to Altherr, the better fielder.

Who knows what else Kapler will come up with?

"So will the 2018 season be different than prior Phillies seasons?" Klentak said. "Yes. But we don’t think that makes it wrong. We think we’re adjusting to the style and athleticism of our team and putting the team in the best position to win."